Tuesday, 24 January 2012

On our assessment day we began by unloading the van, which had all our equipment in it because we were filming in Manchester the day before. After we bought the equipment upstairs we started setting up the cameras, microphones, vision and audio mixers. It didn't take us long to set up but we had a big problem with one of the cameras as we could not get the picture up on the tricaster. After last weeks confusion on which group was going to film when we decided that we would go second because we had our VT ready and we were confident that we could shoot our programme. At first we thought it was the camera because it had a composite cable port which didn't work. So after we failed trying to move around the cable in the camera to get the picture up we decided to change the composite cable to another one. This, however, still didn't fix our issue and we were beginning to think that we wouldn't be able to use one of the cameras. As a last resort we decided to use a Sony V1 camera instead of the Panasonic P2 and that didn't work for us either and still couldn't get any image on the tricaster. So we decided that we would only use two cameras for our shows which would be very hard on the camera operators.

On the first programme I was one of the camera operators so I had to be ready to work more than I should because both of us had to change our shots whenever we weren't filming to try and make it look like there was more than two cameras. After we had set up all the other equipment we decided to go through one practice shot before we began streaming it online because we needed to know what we were doing on the cameras. Before we started doing the first take the director came out of the gallery to explain to me and the other camera operator what he was looking for and also how we had to tackle the issue of only having two cameras to work with. When we started filming we had to change shots very quickly when we weren't live. Every time I knew I wasn't live I started offering the director different shots and kept on switching from wide shots, to mid-shots and close-ups. Overall I think the director was pleased with our work and although at times I did offer shots I also did what the director asked for.

After the first group had finished we were all told to go on a dinner break but I decided to stay behind and fix the problem with the cameras. After trying different methods such as switching the camera to the middle preview monitor on the tricaster we decided that instead of using a composite connection we would go with the component cable. We began by changing the composite cable and replacing it with the red, blue and green connecters but we still used a composite cable to go into the tricaster. Even with this change over nothing was working so we tried the same thing with the Sony V1 and it still didn't work. What we had to do to ensure that we could use the third camera was use a component cable running from the camera straight into the front of the tricaster. So before I went on my dinner break I set up the camera and had the component cable running from the studio to the tricaster which was tricky because the component cable wire is a lot thicker than the composite cable and its purple which made it hard to hide during the shoot, but we managed it.

When I came back from lunch I found out that the camera was once again not working and we were ready to start filming. I checked the connection again and I got some picture on the tricaster but the colour was black and white. After I changed over a few of the cables in the camera and tricaster I finally got it working again and we were ready to film. I began my job as the floor manager by getting everyone on set and ready to film. I also had set up the microphones on the presenter and guests as well as we didn't have a sound operator at the time because he wasn't in. I asked one of the other students to fill in for our group, then we were ready to shoot. We didn't get the chance to rehearse last week so we took this opportunity to get a few practice shots before we began filming. I made sure we practiced as quick as possible because there were another three groups to film their programmes after us.

After two practice takes we decided it was time to start recording our live show. My job was to make sure everyone knew what they were doing and also to ensure that no one else apart from the production team, the presenter and the guest were on the studio floor. I also had to cue in the guest because we were going to have him walk into shot instead of him sitting there with the presenter. We were suppose to have two guests including one of the music students but they decided not to take part in our programmes. During the shoot I had problems with my talkback and I couldn't hear the director (Ashley) so I had to ask the camera operators when we were playing the VT so I knew when to cue the presenter back in and also I had to cue in the guest. Our show lasted around 5 minutes and I think there was still some confusion with our presenter as she wasn't sure when we were playing VT.

Overall I think our programmes was done very well and it went smoothly. After a difficult patch with the camera I think we recovered well and although we needed a couple of practice shoots they were helpful towards the end product as they covered some confusion. I think we all did well on our job roles and worked very well as a team. It was very good experience for me as I did several things from setting up, to problem solving and I always enjoy being the floor manager on shoots.

On the 11th January we had to rehears for our programmes which we had been planning for the 8 weeks. During the past 8 weeks me and my team had been planning all aspects of our show from studio setup, props, production team and the programme idea.

We came in at 9:30am and began setting up the studio for the first groups programmes. It didn't take us long to setup but there was some confusion on which group was going to shoot first because a couple of groups weren't ready. We didn't have our VT ready so we decided we would figure out how long it lasted and improvise as it wasn't being streamed online, it didn't matter. Setting up took us up to lunch and after we came back we began with the first group. For this group I was going to be on camera one, which was good for me because I could get to watch the other group and try to pick up on their mistakes and try not to make them my self. I found that there was a lot of confusion between the presenters and the director because the presenter never knew when the VT was rolling and also there was a few problems with the teleprompter as the presenter was finding it hard to read with the light in her eyes.

It was difficult being a camera operator because of all that confusion I think the director himself was confused as everything wasn't going to plan. We realised that we weren't really ready and had to use these rehearsals to prepare us for next week as that was our assessment day. When the second group came on I didn't have a job role so I sat in the gallery to get a taste of what it's like in there when they cut to VT and see what it looks like as a programme would on television. The direction is usually good but the problem we have is that the presenters don't know when we cut to VT so after they finish reading off the teleprompter they have a confused look on there face. This I believe could be easily avoided by the director informing the floor manager that they were rolling VT and to ask the presenter to prepare for the next part of the show.

Our group was last and when it came to our turn most of the people had left to either go home or go to the library to do some work. This meant that we were only left with two camera men and only one guest so we couldn't really rehears our show. We still went through with it as we used the time to rehears what our programme would look like. So we decided on which shots we would use and if we would have one of the cameras on track or not. We went through the practice shot for our own benefit and decided it was well timed and began setting up props for the studio as well. We were now ready for next week and the only thing we had to do was put together the VT for our show. I was confident as a floor manager and also confident that our show would look good and run smoothly.

Monday, 23 January 2012

The final week before the main rehearsals we came together as a group and discussed what our studio would look like on the day of our shoot. We decided because the topic was the collaboration between music and media students we would place props such as music instruments and filming equipment on the table and floor. Although we had curtains behind the presenter and guests we decided we would use a board as well as we could attach some props to it like music posters. Instead of two chairs we wanted to use a sofa to give the programme more of a chat show feel and it would make our guests more comfortable when talking. For the presenter we decided to use a red chair to make it stand out so we know who the presenter is and it looked better than the normal chairs. We also completed our group paperwork, which was the running order, signal pathways and the programme proposal. We were ready for next week when we were going to rehears our full programme.

This week we began testing interviews and interview techniques. As practice we also interviewed one of the music students that came to film their music video. We practiced setting up the cameras as well as the clip microphone which was a radio mic. We had to make sure the frequency on the radio and the receiver were both the same otherwise the sound operator would not hear anything. If there is more than one clip microphone involved then we would have to make sure that both receivers were on different frequencies to avoid any interference between the microphones. We can also use the boom microphone to interview a subject because clip microphones are very sensitive and if we're outside it would be better to use a boom microphone and attach a softy to it.

We rehearsed setting up the teleprompter today for our news packages. We all took turns typing up a script on the teleprompter for the news presenter to read off. We had to screw the teleprompter onto the tripod and make sure it was the right height for the presenter to read off. We also took turns reading off the teleprompter because some of us were going to be presenters for other students programmes. We had a few issues when setting it up because we didn't have the right lead and also the laptop would not switch on so we had no way of setting it up. But once everything was ready we began typing scripts and recording the presenters as well.

In the third week we we rehearsing studio set up. As a group we had to set up the studio including, cameras, tripods including track/dolly, clip/boom microphones, vision mixer and sound mixer including the tricaster and monitors. We all took turns in setting up each piece of equipment so we all know how to do it if we had a certain role in the studio. We knew which equipment had issues with them and we labeled them. The talkback had a few issues with them because only one of the headsets were able to talk to the director and we decided that it would be the one that the floor manager would use. Also one of the cameras have a dodgy cable connection and the camera would only project an image onto the monitors if someone messed about with the cable and then taped the cable to the camera.

The next week we researched other television and news
programmes in order to look at how they were being filmed and also gather some
ideas from them. What we looked out for was the opening, how they cut to the VT and closing of the show.

In this video the presenter, who is also the on-scene news reporter is explaining how news is reported within the video itself. Usually before the presenter there is some animation, which then cuts straight to the studio and the presenter introduces the topic. After the opening it cuts to some VT and then the on-scene news presenter is either stood still or walking while explaining more on the topic. After some more VT the graphics are included with some shots of interviews with the public and also an interview with someone who has been effected by the topic. The programme either ends in the studio with the presenter or with a shot of something after the news reported gone of the screen.

At the beginning we were given briefs and had been told on what we would be doing for the next eight weeks. We discussed our idea for what we should do as a programme and also which roles were to be given to who. We decided that Matty would be best suited for the producer role because he is the most efficient and organised. We chose Ashley as our director because we agreed that he was the most creative and also had the most experience in filming. We decided that I was going to be floor manager because I was able to control the environment and control the speed of the production team. This left Fred with the job of being vision mixer and we chose these roles because we believe they suited each individual.

The producer is in my opinion the most
important and influential role in the making of television because the producer
has to deal with an essential part of making a television programme, which is
money. It is the producers’ job to fund or find funding for locations, artists,
and the crew. Another job is to market the film to directors, artist,
television channels and whoever is going to apply the funding for the programme.
If the production is given a certain budget for a programme then it is the
producers’ role to keep it within that budget.

The producers’ job does not stop at just the
funding of the film because they also have to overlook the entire production
from start to finish. The producer is essentially the team leader and is
supported by other people such as production assistants, coordinators and other
managers. A producer will sometimes also have another job such as a director,
so it is important that he/she has some directing skills as well. More jobs for
the producer is to research and looking at ideas for scripts, hiring writers or
securing the rights to use novels/books. Throughout these jobs a producer will
make contacts them self and also allow other people to connect.

Director

A director is the liaison between the producers
and members of a production team. It is the directors’ job to project the ideas
of the producers onto screen and add their own creative input. It is their decisions
that affect the overall outcome of a production because they decide which shots
to use and they interact with the artists so that they can give to the audience
what the director requires. The director also interacts with the other
production staff so he can get a required look and feel. E.g. he will work with
the lighting team to get a better look in a scene or work closely with the camera
operator to achieve a similar objective.

The director’s job differs depending on the
different type of television he may be doing, e.g. if it’s a live event such as
a football game or a live entertainment programme. As well as the different types
of shots the director also decides on the placement of microphones, lighting
and props. They decide where everything that will be seen and even items that
won’t be seen are placed. After the production (if it isn’t a live production)
the director will work closely with the director and choose which shots to use
and if needed they will remove certain shots also.

Floor Manager

The role of a studio floor manager is a very
important role because the floor manager is the link between the director and
every other person on the studio floor. It is the floor managers job to ensure
that all equipment is safe and ready to use by checking with the people in
different departments. The floor manager must also make sure that the audience
and guests are being seen to and are seated prior to filming. Also as part of
health and safety it is the floor managers job to ensure that the audience is
aware of safety measures, show timings and to make them aware of when the
programme will be aired.

The floor manager is also the link between any
presenters/anchors during a show. They need to make sure that the presenters
are comfortable and also to brief them on how everything has been planned. Also
to pass on cues to presenters to ensure that everything is done according to
its time and that everything is being filmed smoothly and efficiently. The
floor manager could be classed also as the directors’ assistant because they
are a direct link between the director (in the gallery) and staff other than
the camera operators as they also have links with the director.

During the shoot a floor manager would pass on
instructions from the director using a talkback system to other production staff.
It is the floor managers duty to report back to the director any off camera
action that may be going on. They also organise runners to make sure every second
is saved and put into filming time. If any technical issues are occur then it
is the floor managers role to see that they are being dealt with and at the
same time to report back to the director any information or loss of time. If so
then it is in their hands to stop proceedings and also keep the audience
entertained if need be.

In other occasions e.g. outside of the studio
the job roles of the floor manager is changed slightly. If there is an
interview then the floor manager must speak with public relations staff to
agree on who will be interviewed during a sports match. Also if there is a live
event happening and the floor manager is not in the studio, then they will feed
information from what they are witnessing to a television presenter. When away
from the studio it is still the floor managers job to ensure that there is a
safe working environment.

I believe that the first and major quality a
floor manager would need to be successful is to be able to work in a team.
While they need to be able to work in a team they also need to be able to give
instructions clearly to other production staff so that everything is done to
satisfy the directors needs. On occasions a floor manager will play a roll of
an interviewee for a presenter/reporter. They must also be good at time keeping
so that they can plan a schedule to ensure everything is done smoothly and
nothing is left out. People skills are also essential because as well as
working within a team the floor manager also communicates with the audience to
make sure they are being looked after well before, during and after filming.
Time keeping is also a must have quality as it is their role to ensure that
everything is on time and nothing is left out of the show.

The floor manager must keep everything on
schedule and when something does happen that halts proceedings then it their
job to make sure the issue if resolved quickly so that filming can resume
again. Another useful skill is for the floor manager to be able to watch over
all other departments and staff because everyone is involved in filming and if
one person isn’t doing their job properly then it would be a problem for the
whole production. Another reason for them to be watchful is for health and
safety reasons. The floor manager needs to stay vigilant at all times of
possible risks that may occur during the shoot.

My Skills

I believe so far I have some skills that are
equal to that of a professional floor manager such as, coordinating the
production team, directing other members of the team, dealing with problems
that occur when filming and speeding up a production if needed. I have been a
floor manager a few times now and when I am floor manager I’m very comfortable
and I like to work closely with the director and other members of the team. I think
I can be an important link in a production and make my voice heard so that
people understand what is happening at all times and there is no confusion.

Skills Needed

Although I am confident in being a floor
manager I don’t think I have enough confidence if I was needed to manage an
actual production, which was being shot live on television. I think I would not
be able to go straight into a production team as a floor manager because I
would probably need to shadow a floor manager because I know what I have been
doing isn’t anywhere near as big as a scale as what it is really like.
Shadowing a floor manager would help me understand the works of a production
team, e.g. the positioning of the cameras, microphones and track/dolly.

I would also need to be able to work calmly
under stress, which at this point I don’t think I would be able to do, as I
don’t have enough experience to do so. Something else that I would need is a
good sense of timing and being able to work towards a floor plan because once
something changes I would need to be able to work around it and make sure it
doesn’t change the initial plan.

Action Plan

For me to become a floor manager I would first
need to complete my education and get good grades as it always helps to have
something positive on your CV. While I’m in college/university I want to be the
floor manager on as many productions as possible to gain more experience. The
way forward for me will be to work on different productions as well as just in
university. I would like to concentrate on a different role first, such as,
camera operator or vision mixer before moving on to floor manager because these
roles will help me get a wider range of understanding on what is required. I
believe there is a lot more to being a floor manager then what I have already
experienced so I should really pay attention to better my self.

Friday, 20 January 2012

After watching and studying an interview on The
Jonathan Ross show I mapped out a floor plan of where I thought the cameras
were and also why they were stationed at those positions. The first thing I
noticed was the safe shot, which is in middle of the studio. It is also one of
three cameras which I think are primarily for the interview shots. I also found
three other cameras which I believe are on cranes and they are there because of
the interviewee. Lee Evans who is a real character and very practical when he’s
on stage, e.g. he bungee jumps onto the studio and also runs across the studio
to the other side of it. For those reasons I believe that they needed some
cameras on cranes to keep up with the artist being interviewed.

I watched the show around three times to make
sure I was sure about where all the cameras are and how many cameras were
involved. It was difficult because the cameras had to zoom out for the
interviewee, as he kept on getting up and moving which is unusual for an
interview. What helped me was that before the end of each shot I saw the
cameras begin to zoom back in for the close ups during the interview.

I think the production was done very well
considering that the interviewee was very active and would not stop moving
around. I believe the best idea was to have those three cameras on cranes to
follow around Lee Evans. Without those I believe the show would not have looked
as good because the picture wouldn’t look as good if it were to keep tilting up
and down. The panning on the cranes look a lot better and create a smoother
image.

Thursday, 19 January 2012

When we arrived on the day we immediately started setting up and it was a lot faster than the first assessment day because it wasn't our first day of filming. Although we set up by 12:00 we still had to wait for the music technicians to set up downstairs so we had to wait for them which was ok because the first act was set to perform at 13:30. We all went for lunch and when we returned we ready to film except we were having issues with the online stream. I'm not sure what the problem was because I was on the studio floor but after a short while we were ready to begin.

For the first act I shadowed the floor manager as that was to be my job for the second act. The first act was quite slow because of the issues with the online stream and also the presenters were taking some time getting ready downstairs. When it came to my turn I was under pressure to speed up the filming as the performer was getting pretty hot under the lights. I worked closely with the director and made sure the camera operators were set up and ready to go as we were behind on time.

I had everyone upstairs ready and spoke to the artists. I asked them to practice while we wait for the team downstairs to prepare for the shoot. We were waiting for a while before they ready downstairs. From what I heard over the headset I believe they were waiting for the presenters to be ready but what I think it was is that there was a lack of communication between the presenters and the director. Once they were ready we began and it went very smoothly, then after the shoot I asked the runner (Danny) to escort one of the acts downstairs to film. I went downstairs as well to ensure that everything went well and there was no more miscommunications between the director and presenters.

We had 5 more acts to go and I didn't have a job for non of them so I had to help out in the presenters room. We had a camera in there so I used that twice within the last five interviews. Also I set up the boom microphones so that we captured the best sound. It was more difficult during the interviews because there was always a different amount of people being interviewed. When I wasn't filming I was the floor manager to help make things move faster.

During one of the shoots the vision mixer forgot the press the record button and so did the person in control of the online stream so we had one unrecorded video. We had three more acts left and we decided that we were going to move things as quick as possible so we could have time to re-record the other bands. We had to record three acts within an hour so that we had fifteen minutes left to record the other band again. I worked as fast as I could downstairs making the presenters hurry with their performances so that we had time. We just about made time by starting filming at 16:05 and we had to be done in ten minutes. We finished a few minutes late and had our technician waiting for us outside. We de-rigged everything within fifteen minutes and loaded it into the van. I believe it was a very successful day and any issues that we did have were resolved. The fact that we were able to re-record one of the acts is proof that we were able to be quick and efficient.

On the first day of our multi camera practice I
arrived a few minutes late so I missed my job role and instead I was assisting
Daniel as floor manager, which essentially made me a runner. Although on a real
shoot this meant fetching people brews and sending messages to other members of
the crew, because we’re all students and we’re still learning I was able to
help others set up their equipment, such as, cameras, sound, talkback and the
vision/audio mixer. It took us around an hour and forty-five minutes to set up
all the equipment. In my opinion this was too long considering that we had
already practiced setting up a few times already.

This also meant that for the second act of the
day I would be floor manager because there aren’t enough roles for every
student, so everyone that assisted someone for the first act would take over
that persons job role for the second act. While the first act was performing I
stood behind Daniel and watched carefully to see what was going on and what
kind of problems he had.

After the first act had finished, the second
one had arrived and it was my turn to take over the role as floor manager. The
first thing I did was I spoke to the act and asked him if he felt ok and if he
needed anything. Then I spoke to the director (Ashley) to make sure he was
happy and if he needed anything. He decided that everything was ok and didn’t
want to change the cameras or anything else either. He was however a little
unhappy about the plug sockets behind the artist but that was something that
wasn’t in our control so we had to record with the plug sockets viewable.

Before we started filming we had an issue with
the talkback system, which we also had in the morning, it was my job to get the
sound operator (Fred) to fix this problem. It was our first day of filming so
we couldn’t expect the sound operator, or any student to amend this issue, so
we left it to Colin and Peter (staff members) to solve our problem. After the
talkback was fixed I tried my best to get the crew back into the mood for
filming because we had just come back from break and we had to wait longer for
the talkback system to be set up. As a floor manager you must speak with
authority to get things done quickly and at the same time you also need to give
directions in detail so that who ever you speak to understands what you are
saying.

Overall I was very happy with my performance as
floor manager bearing in mind that it was my first time, Although at times I
think I could have sped things up a little as it seemed that on occasions
nothing practical was being done and I think I was to blame for that.

Day Two

We had already decided the week before on which
job roles we were all going to be given so when we came in this week we had
already started setting up our own equipment and also helped others with their
equipment. Although this time one performer would do two acts so that everyone
gets to do two jobs and not be an assistant first. My first job was to be a
camera assistant for camera two and then I would take over the job for the
second act. Camera two was on a dolly so it needed an assistant to handle the
cables and make sure that the shots looked smooth and also as a safety measure
for the camera operator.

A major problem we had while setting up cameras
was that we had two different types of lighting. We had light from outside
coming in and also we had studio lights, which were being used. This made our
jobs very difficult when it came to having the same type of colour in each image
because depending on what angle the camera is set resulted in different amounts
of light coming in from outside. This resulted in each camera being set at
different aperture levels but it still didn’t help us.

Before we started filming we had a problem with
the talkback again with a camera operator not being able to speak to director,
although I didn’t think it was a big problem because I don’t think he needed
to. The director tells the camera operator if he is live or not and when the
camera operator wants to offer the director a different shot he will wait for
when he isn’t live and then offer the shot. If the director agrees he will cut
to that shot and if he isn’t then he will ask the camera operator to offer a
different shot.

For the performers second act I took up my job
as camera operator and I received some good advice from Peter on how to use the
dolly. When I’m not live then I should position the dolly wheels in the
direction of which the camera will be moving to ensure that the shots I provide
are smooth and there isn’t weird wobbling motion at the beginning of each shot.
I would say that I had a few problems while operating camera two. My biggest
issue was moving the dolly while keeping the camera stationed on the act. I
found that when I was moving the dolly I wasn’t turning the camera, which led
to the act almost disappearing from the shot. Apart from that I think I did
well with the overall performance as I did what the director (Danny) asked for
as well as offering some shots of my own but I will need more practice using
the dolly.

When the second performer arrived we all
swapped roles again and this time I would start as an assistant director, which
in essence is the floor manager, so instead, I helped out other people with
their job roles if they needed me. When it came to the performance I stayed in
the gallery and watched over the director (Joe). I think I learn best by doing
things but I think it helps to watch what others are doing and try to learn
from their mistakes as well as pick up on the things they do correctly.

When it came to me being the director the first
thing I did was speak to the camera operators (Andrew G, Danny and Andrew T). I
explained what I wanted from them and for them to listen when I was telling
them who was live, so when they weren’t it would give them a chance to offer me
other shots. Watching the other director I did learn some stuff but when you’re
in that role its very different and I, on a couple of occasions forgot to tell
the camera operators that they were live. I think the reason I did those things
is because there were just too many screens to look at which confused me but I
believe I will get better with practice. I spoke clearly and direct
instructions to everyone so it helped move along the process smoothly.

Day Three

When we arrived in the morning the equipment in
the gallery was already set up so we didn’t have to do anything in there and
just focused on the cameras, tripods and microphones. We set up within an hour
and were ready to start filming the first performer. Again this week there
would be two acts and both acts would perform twice to give everyone a chance
to take on a job role. My first job role was sound mixer so I set up the boom
microphones, one on each side of the performer but not in-sight of the cameras.
We didn’t face many problems on set up today and everything ran smoothly and
began shooting in the morning.

Sound mixing for me isn’t the most difficult
job although it can get very confusing with all the different buttons and
switches on there. To make it an easy task you can use the master faders, but
that wouldn’t work in interviews because some people are louder than others and
it would make the job very difficult. I instead opted to use the two separate
levellers to try and make the sound as equal as possible. To ensure I got the
best sound possible I found out where the artist was standing, I put the
microphones parallel to him and pointed both microphones towards him as well.
During the performance I had to make sure that the sound did not peak into the
red zone because then it would cause the sound to distort. Also I had to keep
an ear out for any swearing because if someone swears I have to inform the
person in charge of the online stream so they could either mute or end the live
stream as there was a delay in the live performance and stream.

For the next two performances I had no job role
so I helped out with anyone having trouble setting up and helped with health
and safety issues such as wires/cables across the floor which had to be dealt
with by putting mats over the cables or taping them to the floor. I had to wait
until the final performance before I could get another job role.

For the last act I was on camera one and this
was not going to be on a dolly which was disappointing because I think I could
do with more practice on there. This did however mean that I wasn’t the safety
shot and I had the option to offer more creative shots such as the performers
instrument or close ups of their face etc. Before recording I had to check the
white balance, aperture, manual focus and gain. Everything on the camera must
be set to manual and if need be I could use peaking to make assist me with my
focus and a frame to ensure that I was 4:3 safe. I enjoy working on the camera
because I think from all the roles apart from the director it gives me more
freedom to be creative.

Evaluation

I would say I enjoyed every job role and I had
at least one issue with every job but if I was to pick a favourite it would be
floor manager because I believe the floor manager is the key link in a
production team. If the floor manager is having a bad day it affects everyone,
as it is his/her responsibility to make sure everyone, including the performers
is happy. The floor manager is the link between the director and the rest of
the production team. I believe I would need more practice as a camera operator
because that is a role I find enjoyable and would like to improve on so I can
be a valuable team member. Also it would give me the opportunity to be more
creative.

Being a director I think is the most stressful
job as sometimes your directions can be misinterpreted and you find yourself
having to stand in front of someone and physically explaining what you mean.
That is probably why it is the most rewarding role because the director must
interpret what he sees and hears and then project that onto screen in a fashion
that would captivate an audience. I would say that sound on this occasion was a
relatively easy job but it is very important and without it, there would be no
use of a music video. I think sound would be very challenging on a higher scale
such as, X-Factor, Britain’s Got Talent documentaries etc.

Overall I think the experience I received was great
and was very helpful to me not only to know how to do certain job roles but
also to understand the importance of team work and how each role is linked with
another to ensure that the end product is something worth watching or listening
to. It will be very helpful when it comes to being assessed because I have had
enough practice and I’m confident that when the time comes I will be able to
work as part of a team and cope well under the pressure of creating a live
show.

Wednesday, 11 January 2012

Tuesday 10th January was our first day that we were assessed on our performances during a music video shoot. We all arrived onto the location on time and not long after the equipment had arrived as well. After unloading the van and putting all the kit in the studio we began to set up the cameras, track and all the equipment which had to go into the gallery. It took us around an hour to set up the equipment including the tri-caster and audio mixer and after that we waited on the sound operators for the music students to arrive. During that time we ran through some rehearsals with the presenters and had some of the crew jump in and act as the music students.

I was on sound for the first act so it was up to me to initially set up the audio mixer for the rest of the day. Before the acts began we all went on a dinner break and at that time i had the sound working fine. After lunch when I returned I had to work with the music students in order to ensure that the audio was running from their mixer into our audio mixer. After they had completed their set up I was having some issues because I couldn't hear any music and I was having difficulties solving the problem. The problem took a while solving but after that we began to go through the set up and solved the issue.

After the first act had finished they were escorted downstairs to do their interview. It took longer than it should have to take the performers downstairs or their interviews and we were waiting a while on the vision and audio mixers. After the first act I muted the microphones upstairs and waited for the interview while the graphics played on the screen. Once the performers got into the interview room I turned up the microphone volume and began mixing the interview. After the interview we faded to black, turned down the volume and began setting up for the next act.

I didn't have a job for the next two act so my role was to help others set up and also help the presenters in the other room for their introductions and interviews. After the initial set up we were very quick on getting ready, filming and interviewing. It's confusing how everything works when you use it but then the very next day you have issues using the equipment.

For the next act I was on camera one which was stationed to the left. It was a little different to when we were at Fielden campus because the stage was a couple of feet above the ground. We had to compensate by lifting the cameras higher than usual and we worked in darkness for the sake of the music video.

As a camera operator I worked closely with the director (Nyasha). It's important to listen to the director and try to give him what he wants. He asked us to offer him shots which is good for a camera operator to hear because it helped me be creative. Also because our microphones on the headsets didn't work we had to communicate with the director through the floor manager when the director was downstairs.

On the last shoot I had no job role so I once again decided to help out downstairs in the interview room either being a floor manager or filming the interview. I wanted to have it handheld but the director decided to have it on a tripod which I believe didn't give it a backstage feeling.